Canada tightens Ukraine’s access to poultry and eggs

The country’s finance minister, Chrystia Freeland, said tariff relief for Ukrainian goods such as steel would continue for another year to help support Kyiv against the conflict from Russia. Additional trade access was due to expire earlier this month.

Canada’s egg, poultry and dairy sectors are protected under a supply-management system under which local farmers produce eggs, poultry and dairy in a structure that limits production and exposes them to minimal import competition under quotas.

Canadian poultry and egg farmers and processors had complained that Ukraine’s access made it harder to control imports. Concerns were also raised about the safety of Ukrainian food due to infrastructure damage, reports Reuters.

Freeland said that Canada would allow Ukraine to continue shipping those products tariff-free within World Trade Organization quotas, but would reimpose duties on shipments above those quotas. According to the USDA, before the war, Ukraine was the sixth-largest chicken meat exporter.

Meanwhile, Ihor Michalchyshyn, CEO of the diaspora group Ukrainian Canadian Congress, urged the government to continue Ukraine’s full duty-free access to support its farm industry.

“While we welcome the extension of the tariff waiver on some Ukrainian goods, we are disappointed that Canada excluded some key agricultural industries,” he reportedly said.